BURNT HILLS --Kyle Vashkulat, 21, has called the Capital Region his home since high school at Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake, when he moved to pursue his Olympic dreams at the Jason Morris Judo Center.

Nick Delpopolo, 23. left his home in New Jersey and moved to Burnt Hills in seventh grade to join the Jason Morris Judo Center. This was the second time Delpopolo had been taken in, after being adopted from Montenegro at age 2.

Vashkulat and Delpopolo are ranked among the top 22 in their weight class, which assured them of spots on the U.S. Olympic team. The two leave for London this week to compete in the XXX Olympiad.

Vashkulat joked that his first Olympic priority is to enhance his potential television face time during this Friday's opening ceremonies.

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"You've got to try to get that camera time, man," Vashkulat said. "I was thinking maybe like, LeBron (James), someone that's definitely going to get some camera."

Young for a judoka at his 100 kilogram weight class -- the second largest weight class in the sport -- Vashkulat has racked up five world cup medals, medaled at the Pan-American Championships twice, was twice named to the USA World Team and is a two-time United States national champion.

Delpopolo is a five-time World Cup medalist, a Pan-Am medalist, a two-time USA World Team member, and a four-time U.S. National Championship silver medalist. Delpopolo has been fighting internationally for three years, estimating that he has already fought in 40 or 50 countries.

Born in Ukraine, Vashkulat's family immigrated when he was an adolescent, relocating to the Capital Region to allow the youngster to pursue his passion for the sport and Olympic dream.

"I moved to the states when I was about 10," Vashkulat said. "In Russia and the Ukraine it (judo) is a big deal. So, my parents had heard of it, and my friends down in Philadelphia, where I'm from, actually opened up a club. .Y.Y. I'm just this little fat kid (at the time) running around, and they're like 'Hey, you know, get him into judo. You know, try it out.'Y"

"I just kind of tried it, was OK at it and just stuck with it," Vashkulat said.

Once in Burnt Hills, the two have stayed at judo center operator Jason Morris' house with several other young Olympic hopefuls, forming a fraternity that has grown together to be one of the sport's most dominant stables in the country.

"It's a big house," Vaskulat said. "The way he has it set up, he has a third floor which is just him and (his wife) Terry. And then there is a bottom floor -- like a middle floor -- and a basement and workout area is our area."

Delpopolo's ascent to one of the world's top spots did not come easily.

"I used to lose all the time, going 0-1, 2-1, 1-1, never even medaling, never even fighting for a medal," Delpopolo said. "But you keep fighting and just keep going, you're bound to get a good draw some time, you're bound to succeed."

Raising money to travel and compete has also been an issue.

Delpopolo is sponsored by the New York Athletic Club, which reimburses him for travel expenses and entry fees. He also earns money based on a stipend from USA Judo. The better he does in tournaments, the more money he makes. Delpopolo has also teamed up with his girlfriend, a retired five-time national champion, to develop nickdelpopolo.com, a website that accepts donations to help him pursue his Olympic dreams.

"I used the Internet to my advantage," Delpopolo said. "I put highlight reels of myself, my world rank, my U.S. rank, all sorts of footage, blogs and whatever, pictures from trips and whatnot and I ask people to donate to my site."

He said the site generated more than $15,000 in 10 months.

Vashkulat had trained in Philadelphia at the Liberty Bell Judo Club before moving to Burnt Hills, mimicking the move of fellow trainee Nick Kossor.

"Me and Nick (Kossor) used to go to the same club," Vashkulat said. "He left a couple of months after I joined, and that's essentially how I heard about Jason Morris, because everyone was like 'Oh, Nick's leaving to Jason Morris,' and I was like 'Who is this Jason Morris?' and a couple of years later, I was looking for a serious club and I was like, 'Oh, let's check out Jason's club,' because I knew Nick was here."

A familiarity with the technique of a sparing partner cannot always overcome a large weight difference when sparring. As the largest international competitor at the Jason Morris Judo Center, Vashkulat still spars with the smaller competitors, but finds himself with the competitive advantage of being suited to train head-to-head with Morris himself.

"I'm actually super-lucky, because Jason is .Y.Y. So, I get to work out with him," Vashkulat said. "I'm pretty lucky, because the other guys don't get that. So while I don't have as many workout partners, I get the best guy in the club."

Vashkulat still has a lot of time to absorb technique from his sparring sessions with Morris. Despite his varied accomplishments on the mat, he is one of the youngest competitors in his division.

"The heavier guys mature much later. I'm only 21, so I am the baby of the division," said Vashkulat. "I'd say on the international roster I'm one of the youngest guys. Most of the guys in the division that are dominant are more like 27, 28, so I'm a kid.

"Heavyweights last a lot longer than the lightweights," Vashkulat continued. "The lightweights, it's more speed, but the heavyweights it's more strength and power. You get your power a little later, in your mid- to high-20s, to where mid-20 for speed, that's going to decline."

For Vashkulat, that should translate into a lucrative international judo career with the next step hopefully coming at the next two weeks' Olympics in London.